L.L. Bean Edition a great buy!

I finally settled on the Outback after agonizing over what to replace my Mazda B4000 4x4 with. I wanted something for my wife to drive on snowy days in the winter (i.e. 4 wheel drive), with usable hauling capacity for the occasional trip to the furniture store, and better fuel economy than the 14 mpg my truck got. The options are surprisingly sparse in the sub-$35,000 category. I am the former owner of a mid-size SUV (Honda Passport), and had no desire to go back to the poor handling of an SUV. The Lexus, BMW and Acura hybrid vehicles are nice, but too expensive. The Audi, Volvo and VW wagons looked too much like...... well.... wagons! A minivan would probably have been technically the best choice, but I just couldn't get myself to look at them. It would be like conceding to the fact that I'm getting older, and I wasn't ready to do that! :) So after much research, I determined that the Outback was just about the only vehicle that met my criteria.

I researched all relevant sources to make sure the reliability was high (it is) and that the price was reasonable (it was). Then I decided on which model was the best value. I settled on the L.L. Bean edition. Subaru has finally come out with a 6 cyl. engine in 2001, and it's only offered in the L.L. Bean and the top-of-the-line VDC edition. After a test drive in the 4 Cyl. Outback Limited and the 6 Cyl. L.L. Bean, it was no contest. The new Boxer 6 has about 50 HP over the 4 cyl., and it REALLY shows. It's MUCH quieter and smoother, and turns the Outback into a true luxury automobile.

Other amenities with the L.L. Bean edition include two-tone leather seats, heated mirrors, auto-dimming rearview mirror, heated front seats, automatic climate control system, a beautiful wood/leather steering wheel, woodgrain trim on the dash and door panels, nice L.L. Bean floormats, Dual power sunroofs (the front one flips up, and the rear one slides), 8-way power adjustable driver's seat, and a few other odds and ends. Don't forget the 6 Cyl. engine, that's worth the price of the entire package by itself!

I looked at the VDC model too, but I didn't feel it was worth another $5000 just for traction/skid control on a vehicle that already has all-wheel drive, a limited-slip rear differential and 4-wheel anti-lock brakes. The VDC also has a killer 11-speaker stereo system, but that still wasn't nearly enough value for me.

The ride in the Outback is unbelievably smooth. I would put it in the class of any luxury automobile (including my wife's Mercedes), it's THAT good. The interior is very quiet and most of the controls are in a logical spot, with the exception of the Cruise Control, which consists of an odd little lever behind the lower right-hand side of the steering wheel. It comes with a good quality 8-speaker stereo system with CD player. The automatic climate control system is top-notch, and works better than any other that I've tried.

The 3.0 Liter 6 Cyl. Boxer engine (horizontally opposed cylinders) puts out 212 horsepower and 210 ft-lbs. of torque. The torque curve is a little high in the rpm band, so you have to rev the engine a little before you really feel it in the seat of your pants, but once you do there is an abundance of thrust available. It's also a VERY quiet engine.

The styling of the Outback seems to be a love it or hate it affair. I think it looks very sporty and unique. Others have seen it and said "Oh, you got a station wagon". You'll know at first sight whether the styling is appealing to you. The ABS Plastic body cladding on the lower panels is actually highly functional in terms of repelling dents and dings, and it seems to dominate the styling.

Subaru quality is well-regarded, and the Outback is no exception. The skiing crowd has known about Subarus for years, but it wasn't until the introduction of the revised Outback (and Crocodile Dundee commercials) that the sales have really taken off. Now the Outback outsells all other cars in its class COMBINED!

For the adventure crowd, the roof rack on the Outback is top-notch and there are quite a few Subaru accessory racks available for kayaks, bikes, travel cases, etc. The cargo space is very large also, and the rear seats flip down completely flat if you need to haul something big.

Now that I've had it for a while, I have just a few minor complaints, but nothing major. The heated seat controls are on the front side of the center console, and they are VERY easy to accidentally bump since they're right behind the cupholder. Not good when it's 95 degrees out! The auto-dimming rear-view mirror is nice, but it would be even nicer if the driver's side mirror dimmed too. The EPA rated fuel economy of 21 City, 27 Highway has not come true so far, as I've averaged about 23 mpg in highway driving. The 8-way power driver's seat is extraordinary, but unfortunately Subaru did not see fit to give the same level of comfort to the passenger, who only gets a 2-way manual adjustment. It would also be nice to have an automatic volume adjustment on the stereo.


Overall, this is a GREAT vehicle, and truly a bargain for all that you get. The L.L. Bean edition combines luxury and utility in a package that is unmatched.